Original subtitles

♪

Narrator: Hundreds of millions of dollars disappear

after the owner of Canada's largest cryptocurrency exchange

allegedly dies under mysterious cicumstances in India.

Ramona Pringle: There are people out there that want the body

exhumed so that they can verify that he's actually dead.

Nikolas Badminton: Sometimes they simply disappear

once they have people's money.

Narrator: An American woman is denied prescription mediacation,

because an algorithm determines

that she is a high risk for addiction.

Kris Alexander: But she claims she hasn't been abusing opiates.

Mhairi Aitken: It's possible the A.I. made a mistake.

And if it did, that raises serious concerns

about its reliability.

Narrator: The President of Gabon appears in a

video address to the nation,

but some citizens believe

that all may not be as it seems.

Pringle: His face looks a lot puffier and smoother,

and the distance between his eyes looks different.

Anthony Morgan: There are plenty of experts who admit

that President Bongo's video looks

like it could have been fabricated.

Narrator: These are the stories of the future

that big data is bringing to our doorsteps.

The real world impact of predictions and surveillance.

The power of artificial intelligence

and autonomous machines.

For better or for worse,

these are the Secrets of Big Data.

♪♪

Narrator: On December 8, 2018,

30-year-old Gerald Cotten and

his new bride Jennifer Robertson

check into the opulent

Oberoi Rajvilas resort in Jaipur, India.

Cotten is the founder of QuadrigaCX,

Canada's largest cryptocurrency exchange.

Pringle: QuadrigaCX is an online platform

where people can trade Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Sort of like a stock exchange.

Narrator: Cryptocurrency can be used to facilitate the sale,

purchase, or trade of goods between parties,

just like the money in our pockets.

The difference is that it's digital and uses encryption

to control the creation of monetary units

and to verify the transfer and ownership of funds.

2017 was a banner year for Bitcoin.

Its value skyrocketed from around $900 US

to almost $20,000,

and as a result, QuadrigaCX flourished and Gerald Cotten

became something of a cryptocurrency tycoon.

Badminton: Quadriga charged a fee for every trade,

and they handled almost $2 billion in transactions

from 363,000 accounts a year.

There was a speculative frenzy and everybody was looking

to pump the market and make some money.

Narrator: Cotten and Robertson are in India

to celebrate their honeymoon.

But things take a shocking turn.

Shortly after checking into the hotel,

Cotten complains of severe stomach pains.

A hotel employee drives them to a local hospital,

where doctors initially dismiss his condition

as traveller's sickness.

However, within 24 hours,

Gerald Cotten is declared dead.

Morgan: Cotten suffered from Crohn's disease,

but he didn't really tell anyone about it.

It causes inflammation of the digestive tract,

which can lead to abdominal pain, fatigue,

malnutrition, weight loss...

But it is rarely fatal.

Narrator: The official cause of death is

complications from Crohn's,

but the gastroenterologist who treated Cotten

later admitted that they were not sure about the diagnosis.

Regardless of the cause, this seemingly healthy young man

is now dead and as the story unfolds,

the fallout from his passing will have a profound effect

on Quadriga's customers.

Pringle: Cotten took Quadriga's account passwords to his grave.

Basically, around $250 million Canadian dollars

from over 75,000 customers vanished.

Narrator: Cotten had earlier claimed

that he wrote the passwords down and kept them in a safe

bolted to the rafters in his attic.

After his death, one of his employees went to the house

to search for it, but came up empty.

He also didn't have a so-called "dead man's switch",

a back-up system that would have automatically transmitted

the codes to a prearranged contact,

should Quadriga's accounts go dormant

for a certain amount of time.

♪

Morgan: At this point, his customers really start to panic.

Many of them have invested huge amounts of money

and it looks like it's gone.

♪

Narrator: As the news of Cotten's death

and the missing passwords hits the internet,

some of Quadriga's account holders become suspicious.

Rumours begin to circulate that Quadriga

was nothing more than a Ponzi scheme,

an investment fraud that pays out existing customers

with money acquired from new investors.

Some even take it one step further

and suggest something truly scandalous.

Maybe Gerald Cotten faked his own death.

♪

Morgan: There is a theory that this was an elaborate exit scam.

When a perpetrator needs a way out of paying their investors

by concocting some kind of story that is beyond their control,

something like our bank "froze our assets."

So they'll stall and avoid the issue until investors eventually

just give up and accept that their money is probably gone.

Badminton: Sometimes they simply disappear

once they have people's money.

This kind of fraud is common in the crypto world,

because it's difficult to trace and to catch the scammers.

Narrator: The difficulty is due to the anonymous nature

of virtual assets.

Cryptocurrencies are decentralized, meaning

all transactions are peer to peer with no authorities,

such as banks or government institutions involved.

Pringle: Transactions are recorded on what's called

the blockchain, which is a public digital ledger.

It's kind of like a shared spreadsheet

that's accessible to anyone on the internet

where every transaction is publicly recorded.

Narrator: With its humble beginnings,

few people would have predicted the meteoric rise

in the value of Bitcoin.

This once obscure cryptocurrency

grew out of the dark corners of the internet

and exploded onto the investing scene.

And it made some people very rich.

Gerald Cotten included.

Pringle: Before his death, Cotten and Robertson

enjoyed the high life.

They owned numerous houses and rental properties,

a 51-foot yacht and even a small airplane.

Morgan: The couple also spent a small fortune

on all kinds of luxuries.

They liked to brag that they'd been to more than 56 countries.

But there's only one small problem

with all of their wealth - it wasn't real.

Narrator: When the price of Bitcoin tanked in 2018,

many of Quadriga's customers became alarmed

and wanted to pull their money out,

but Cotten struggled to make the payments.

Badminton: Cotten was helping himself to customers' money

to finance his lifestyle.

Quadriga became his own personal bank account

and when people started asking for their money,

he didn't have it.

Narrator: Curious internet sleuths began looking into

Cotten's background and discovered that this wasn't

the first time he had duped unsuspecting investors.

Incredibly, as a teenager, he launched his first

online pyramid scheme called S&S Investments,

a venture that promised returns

of up to 150 percent in just two days.

Cotten ran the scam for three months before closing up shop

and vanishing with investors' money.

Pringle: Cotten went on to perpetrate other scams

before launching Quadriga, engaging in money laundering,

identity theft and various other schemes.

Narrator: While it's inarguable that cryptocurrency

has something of a shadowy history,

it has developed an almost cult-like following

among a younger generation of technophiles.

Many supporters staunchly believe that digital currencies

could soon become part of daily life.

Others are doubtful.

Badminton: One of the biggest problems with cryptocurrencies

in their current state is price volatility.

There are huge swings in value, which makes them unusable

on a day-to-day basis as a method of payment.

Narrator: Critics of cryptocurrency

also like to point out that it seems to be

the currency of choice among tech savvy criminals.

The clandestine nature of the blockchain,

makes it ideal for money laundering.

The history of crypto

is littered with tales of theft and fraud.

The veil of secrecy isn't always impenetrable,

and sometimes, for people like Gerald Cotten,

the truth eventually comes to light.

Pringle: Cotten knew his house of cards was collapsing

as the price of Bitcoin plummeted

and he only had two choices,

go to jail or disappear forever.

His death came at a rather convenient time,

which is why some people think he might still be alive.

♪

Narrator: Those who believe Cotten may have faked

his own death cite several suspicious details

that were revealed in the aftermath.

First off, there is the matter of the death certificate -

Cotten's name is misspelled.

This may seem inconsequential,

but the former chairman of the company

that managed the hospital and issued the certificate

had recently been found guilty of fraud.

Morgan: It's no secret that it's easy to buy

forged and faked documents in India,

so for somebody who wanted to fake their own death,

it would be a good place to do it.

Narrator: But the real red flag for the conspiracy theorists

is the fact that Cotten composed a will, only four days

before he and Robertson left for India,

leaving 12 million dollars worth of real estate,

along with various other assets,

to his new bride.

♪

The will also made no reference to any external hard drives,

known as cold wallets, which contained most of the money

that Quadriga's customers had invested.

Pringle: It might just be a coincidence,

but a relatively healthy 30 year old man with a history of fraud,

writing a will less than a week before his death,

definitely seems a bit fishy.

And why no mention of the supposed millions

stored in the cold wallets?

Narrator: Shortly after Cotten's reported passing,

blockchain investigators discovered

that almost all of the wallets were empty.

Cotten had transferred the funds into personal accounts

on other cryptocurrency exchanges

and then squandered most of them on risky trades.

Morgan: This was a massive fraud.

Cotten had to know that when he came back to Canada,

he was going to have to face the music.

Narrator: Cotten's scam wasn't particularly sophisticated,

it was really just a modern take

on an old fashioned Ponzi scheme.

But cryptocurrency is susceptible

to all kinds of illegal activity.

Hackers have shown no shortage of creativity when it comes to

devising new and innovative ways to steal it.

Badminton: Hackers can break into mobile data networks

or users' home WiFi, and then manipulate

or divert crypto trades.

They can also capture login and password information this way.

Pringle: Online digital wallets and exchange platforms

similar to Quadriga are also vulnerable to cyberattacks.

Narrator: Research analysts note that while crypto-related crime

may be at historic highs, the growth of lawful use

far outweighs the growth of criminal activity.

In 2021, illegal trades

represented just 0.15 percent

of the $15.8 trillion dollars

in total crypto transactions.

Badminton: It's not all doom and gloom.

While the blockchain is somewhat anonymous,

every transaction is logged on a ledger

that can be seen by anyone with an internet connection.

And with the right resources, authorities can use

this transparency to stop illegal activity.

Narrator: Crypto detractors admit that although

it may not work as a currency for the time being,

the underlying blockchain technology

does have value in other areas.

Morgan: Businesses are starting to use the blockchain

to secure their data, to oversee supply chain

and even to manage intellectual property.

Narrator: But the primary function of the blockchain

is still cryptocurrency,

and as long as there is money to be made,

there will always be characters like Gerald Cotten

looking to cheat the system.

For her part, Jennifer Robertson

is adamant that her husband is dead,

and that all of the speculation is ludicrous.

She claims she brought Cotten's body back to Canada

and that he was buried five days after his death in a small,

closed casket ceremony in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

But still suspicions linger...

Pringle: There are people out there that want the body exhumed

so that they can verify that he's actually dead.

Narrator: The FBI and Royal Canadian Mounted Police

are actively investigating Cotten's case.

Morgan: Is Cotten still alive?

Well, the jury is still out.

It is pretty tough to fake your own death and get away with it,

but Cotten does have a proven track record

of successfully lying to huge numbers of people.

So...who knows?

Narrator: Investigators were eventually able to recover

around $46 million dollars

from Quadriga's accounts.

Of the over 75,000 duped customers,

only 17,000 of them made claims,

and they will likely receive

only around 10% of their money back.

The strange saga of Gerald Cotten, is a window

into the controversial world of cryptocurrency.

Will it render traditional currency obsolete

and become the unified system

for all global financial transactions?

Crypto evangelists, often with full-throated zeal,

say it is inevitable that one day cryptocurrency

will be an integral part of our everyday lives.

If and when that day comes, is anyone's guess.

Maybe Gerald Cotten knows.

Wherever he is.

♪

♪ [show theme music]

♪♪

Narrator: For many years, a 33 year old woman

living in Michigan, USA has endured

a painful medical condition called endometriosis,

a disorder of the female reproductive system,

where abnormal cells begin to grow outside the uterus.

As a result of this condition, she has had emergency surgery

to remove life-threatening cysts on one of her ovaries

and lives in constant pain.

Alexander: In order to protect her identity,

we will call her Kathryn. It's not her real name,

but to manage her day-to-day pain, Kathryn's doctor

had prescribed her different oral opioids like Percocet.

Fortunately, they seem to be working.

♪

Narrator: But sometimes, no amount of medication

can alleviate Kathryn's suffering.

One day, the pain becomes too intense for her to bear,

and she checks into the local hospital.

Doctors immediately begin monitoring her to see

if she may be developing another ovarian cyst.

They provide her with intravenous opioid medication

to help relieve her pain.

But on her fourth day in the hospital,

something startling happens.

Pringle: Even though she has the potential to develop

another cyst, which would only intensify the pain,

a staff member informs her that she will no longer be receiving

any kind of opioid medication.

Aitken: The reason is that the medical staff believe

she needs help that is not 'pain-related'.

Narrator: Although 'Kathryn' is still in serious pain,

she is discharged from the hospital

with no further explanation.

And only two weeks later, she gets even more troubling news.

Pringle: She receives a letter from her gynecologist's office

telling her that they are dropping her as a patient.

And she is very surprised to find out why.

Narrator: Her doctor recently obtained a medical report

from the NarxCare database,

an AI program that uses algorithms

to help identify a patient's risk of misusing

or overdosing on drugs.

The A.I. had flagged Kathryn as "High Risk".

Opioids are potentially very dangerous medications.

They are derived from the plant that shares the same name

as the drug: 'Opium'.

When ingested, opioids interact with specific cell receptors

that mute a person's pain perception

and then boost feelings of pleasure.

Alexander: They are relatively safe, if properly prescribed

and monitored by a physician.

But there are serious health risks

if opioids are used incorrectly or abused.

Narrator: Too high of a dose can slow a person's breathing

and heart rate, which can lead to death.

And they are very addictive.

Pringle: The problem was born in the '90s,

with doctors overprescribing opioids to patients.

But before doctors and the rest of society realized

how addictive these drugs were, the damage had been done.

Now it's become a serious problem all over the world,

but it's at epidemic levels in the US.

Narrator: In 2019, nearly 50,000 Americans died

from opioid-related overdoses,

more than any other year on record,

136 people every day.

Over the last 20 years, the U.S. Department of Justice

has spent millions of dollars trying to mitigate the problem.

Alexander: They created these state-level prescription drug

databases called P.D.M.P.

- Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs.

They collect data on any controlled substance

that is prescribed to patients.

Narrator: The U.S. government has also recently contracted

many private companies to mine this P.D.M.P. data,

some incorporating the assistance of

machine learning algorithms, which are meant to indicate

if a patient is potentially misusing opioids.

Aitken: It tracks the specific doctors who prescribe

their medications, the pharmacists handing them out,

the amount of dosages they receive and if there are any

overlapping days in their prescriptions.

Pringle: Based on the data, it calculates and creates

a patient's 'risk score, with 0 being those individuals

who are at the least at risk,

and 999 being those highest at risk.

Narrator: Many medical experts assert that these programs

are reliable in accurately assessing a patient's risk,

and are an essential tool to help curb the opioid epidemic.

Alexander: It allows doctors and pharmacists to intervene,

giving them the chance to stop or reduce

a patient's prescriptions before they become a problem.

Narrator: In 2021, the U.S.

Center for Disease Control & Prevention

found that there were almost 20,000 more

opioid overdose deaths than the previous year.

Pringle: This is a significant increase but

many addiction experts counter that

prescription opioids are not the true culprit.

That many deaths are the result of

black-market opioids like fentanyl.

Aitken: Some argue we should use every tool at our disposal

to combat opioid addiction.

And that includes these problematic A.I. programs.

Narrator: But leveraging these systems might come

at the expense of fair treatment for prescription users,

who have been taking opioids for years,

with no reported problems.

The issue lies with how the technology analyses the data

of patients like Kathryn.

Aitken: It's possible the A.I. made a mistake.

And if it did, that raises serious concerns about

it's reliability in such a high-stakes context

as pain relief and medical treatment.

Alexander: There is evidence to suggest

that people with long-term illnesses

do tend to get flagged the most, and not because

they're abusing opioids, but because of the

large amount of data they've accumulated over their lifetime.

Narrator: But patients' history isn't the only data

that the system keeps track of.

The PDMP database also keeps detailed records of physicians,

and if the algorithm suspects

that they may be over prescribing opioids,

they could be at risk of losing their medical license.

Pringle: This could incentivize doctors to not take on patients

suffering from long term chronic pain,

out of fear that they could jeopardize their careers.

Narrator: A 2021 survey of U.S. medical clinics reveals

that roughly 43 percent are now declining

new patients who require opioids.

Alexander: This leaves patients with no other choice

but to keep looking for a physician.

The problem is, if they are lucky enough to find one,

their practice may be far away, possibly out of state.

Narrator: Critics say this may only exacerbate the problem.

The algorithms know when a person changes physicians

and can easily ascertain the distance between their clinic

and the patient's home. And flag this as a problem.

Aitken: If a patient is travelling far

to see their physician,

it may look like they are 'Doctor Shopping',

which is when a person is trying to obtain

multiple prescriptions from as many doctors as possible.

It's common among people with substance abuse issues.

Narrator: And there are further complications

if patients are prescribed other medications

in concert with opioids.

At one point in time, Kathryn was suffering

from post-traumatic stress disorder,

from an unspecified incident,

and was given a prescription for Benzodiazepine,

a sedative that helps alleviate anxiety and insomnia.

A report by the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse

found that combining benzodiazepines with opioids

is extremely dangerous because both drugs

are strong sedatives and can affect a person's ability

to breathe - a common cause of fatal overdoses.

The study also found that when these drugs are taken together,

a person's chances of dying are 10 times higher

than those taking only opioids.

Alexander: As it turns out, the algorithm that assessed Kathryn

does include drugs that treat post-traumatic stress

as "variables" in how it determines risk.

Aitken: This shows the A.I. did what it is designed to do.

It flagged Kathryn as being at a higher risk of overdose.

Narrator: Many academics believe that the technology's

good intentions might have unforeseen consequences.

The algorithms may unfairly target women because

statistically, they are most likely to suffer from PTSD.

Pringle: Studies show that many women endure

significant trauma on a day-to-day basis.

Whether it be spousal abuse or

in some instances, sexual abuse.

Narrator: In 2021, a U.S. law professor published a paper

citing evidence that women who've endured sexual abuse

during their lifetime are much more likely

to be denied opioid prescriptions.

With no legal access to medications

for their psychological or physical pain,

it's believed many will turn to the black market.

Alexander: If you can't get your prescription from your doctor

and pharmacist, you're left with no choice

than to obtain them by some other means.

Aitken: And that puts these women, and anyone else

for that matter, in an even more vulnerable situation

because once on the black market,

the quality of the product can vary.

Meaning they're exposing themselves to drugs

that may be laced with other unknown substances.

Narrator: Kathryn still hasn't found a new doctor,

so she is understandably concerned about

where she'll be able to get her medications from,

if her endometriosis flares up again,

or if any other medical situation arises.

Pringle: The hospital never provided her with an explanation

as to why her prescriptions were discontinued,

so she remains in the dark.

Narrator: Despondent and desperate for answers,

Kathryn began doing research online

and stumbled on a possible reason

for why she may have been flagged by the system,

she had sick pets.

At the time of her hospitalisation,

she owned two older rescue dogs

with significant medical issues.

Both had been prescribed opioids, benzodiazepines,

and barbiturates by their veterinarians.

Alexander: Prescriptions for pets are put under

their owner's name. So to the algorithm it may look like

she is using her sick dogs as an excuse

to obtain opioid prescriptions for herself.

Narrator: But A.I. advocates say that such mistakes

could be remedied by continually improving the technology,

and streamlining the data so that the algorithms only use

information that is relevant to the patient.

Aitken: The problem of opioid addiction is complex,

and it can't be resolved by any one single solution.

So technology won't solve everything.

But if it's designed and developed responsibly,

there's a role for technology in addressing

some of these challenges.

Pringle: This situation needs as much help

and attention as it can get.

Since the beginning of the COVID pandemic,

overdose deaths in the U.S. have soared by nearly 30%.

Narrator: And it's not just there.

Opioid abuse in Canada, Australia,

and some European countries is now reaching similar levels

to those seen in the US,

which has prompted the governments of Belgium,

Finland and the U.K.

to issue new guidelines for doctors

in prescribing opioid-based medicines.

Alexander: They too are exploring the possibility

of using A.I to address the issue.

Narrator: It remains to be seen what real impact

technology will have on the opioid epidemic.

While the intentions are no doubt in the right place,

the middle ground between preventing addiction

and providing comfort to those

who legitimately need medication remains elusive.

♪

♪ [show theme music]

♪♪

Narrator: It's the fall of 2018

and Ali Bongo, the President of Gabon,

hasn't been seen in public in several weeks.

Many citizens have become suspicious of his absence.

Knowing that he had suffered a stroke,

the public begins to suspect

he might be incapacitated.

But the government assures them that he will be delivering

his customary New Year's address.

On Dec 31st, a video of President Bongo

is released to the public.

Ali Bongo: Hello, compatriots.

The Gabonese people, before anything else,

allow me to address to you...

Pringle: When people see this video, it raises

more questions than it answers.

Ali Bongo: [speaking foreign language]

Narrator: There is something unusual

about Bongo's appearance.

Morgan: His voice sounds odd,

and he doesn't really look like himself.

His facial expressions are a little unnatural.

Ali Bongo: [speaking foreign language]

Narrator: Rumours begin to circulate that his video address

was fabricated by the Gabonese government,

in order to deceive its citizens.

Aitken: What's driving the rumours is the fact that

a few months earlier, the President was out of the country

receiving medical treatment in Saudi Arabia and England.

Narrator: There is a growing suspicion

that he is either very ill,

or even more troubling, that he is actually dead.

Some are convinced that the video

is what's called a deepfake.

A form of synthetic media that uses artificial intelligence

to manipulate images or audio

in order to create fake events or actions,

often to portray individuals

saying or doing something they actually didn't.

And they do so with striking authenticity.

'Deepfakes' roots go back as far as the 1990s,

when huge advancements were made in digital media.

Computer programmers began experimenting

with this new technology, fabricating images

and superimposing human faces on other people.

Badminton: One group of programmers are eventually able

to digitally modify a person's mouth movements,

so it looks like they are saying things they never did.

But it wasn't very convincing.

Narrator: In the following decades,

and with the development of artificial intelligence,

the technology makes huge leaps and bounds.

With its help, programmers are more able to accurately mimic

or fabricate human beings in the digital environment.

Aitken: The term 'Deepfake' doesn't really become

part of the popular vocabulary until 2017,

when a user by that very same name,

posts a counterfeit video on a Reddit chain.

Morgan: People are shocked.

It's a pornographic film where the performer's face

has been swapped with the face of the actress, Gal Gadot.

Fake Obama: We're entering an era...

Narrator: The first Deepfake to garner significant

mainstream attention is a 2018 video

that features former President Barack Obama giving a speech

about the dangers of what's on the internet.

Fake Obama: You see, I would never say these things.

Badminton: But it turns out, a filmmaker

had simply swapped his mouth for Obama's,

making it look and sound

as if the President was really talking.

Jordan Peele: Moving forward, we need to be more vigilant

with what we trust from the internet.

Narrator: The video was intended as an ironic

Public Service Announcement for the digital age,

a deepfaked warning about deepfakes.

And it went viral after being shared

millions of times across social media platforms.

According to the deepfake's creators,

it required 56 hours of machine learning

to get the simulation right.

The message culminates with something

Obama would never say.

Fake Obama: Stay woke bitches!

Narrator: Deepfakes are created by using algorithms

that analyze various images and videos of a person

and then use this knowledge to digitally reconstruct

their body, its movements, manner of speech

and even the cadence of their voice.

Aitken: So not surprisingly, there's a lot of concern

that the technology is going to be used

for nefarious purposes. But some people argue

that it can also have practical applications.

Narrator: Educators say 'Deepfakes' can allow

schoolboards to adopt new innovative teaching methods

that have the potential to engage students

on a deeper level.

Pringle: Imagine a video or a hologram of Abraham Lincoln,

or Albert Einstein speaking directly to a class.

This will have far more of an impact than just reading

about them in a textbook or watching a documentary.

Narrator: But Deepfake critics fear that

as the technology improves,

so will its overall accessibility.

Over the past few years, the amount of

'Deepfake' content has been growing rapidly.

At the end of 2018,

there were roughly 8,000 deepfake videos posted online,

but just nine months later,

that number grew to almost 15,000.

Aitken: It's not just companies related to the tech industry.

There's academics, industrial researchers,

even amateur enthusiasts that are now making them.

Tom Cruise Deepfake: What's up TikTok?

Got a little tip for you.

Call it a TipTok [laughs]

Narrator: One enterprising visual effects artist

even went so far as to create a wildly popular TikTok channel

entirely devoted to deepfake Tom Cruise videos.

It features an AI-generated doppelganger

meant to look and sound like him.

Fake Cruise: It's crazy!

Narrator: But there is a downside,

as deepfakes continue to proliferate

and improve in quality,

there is a genuine fear that the general public may be unable

to distinguish imitation from reality.

Morgan: Technology like this has the potential to wreak havoc

on our society if it falls into the wrong hands.

Narrator: Critics warn that it may also have dire consequences

if a government uses the technology

to misinform their people.

And Gabon's citizens suspect this could be

why their government may have faked Ali Bongo's video address.

Morgan: According to the country's constitution,

if a sitting President is too ill, or unfit to lead,

the opposition party can call an election.

Pringle: This would give the government a very good reason

to deceive the public.

Remember, he had had a stroke.

And if he is not well enough to lead, he can be replaced.

Narrator: What President Bongo's government doesn't predict

is that the video ends up having the exact opposite effect,

only adding to people's suspicions

and increasing instability in the country.

Barely a week after the video is released,

a faction within the military launches a coup,

claiming that the government has lost its legitimacy.

Aitken: The coup fails and tensions

within the country eventually simmer down.

But it does raise the possibility

that a similar situation,

where a government's legitimacy is called into question,

could happen really anywhere.

Narrator: In 2019, the US Intelligence community warned

that Deepfakes were a serious national security risk,

because adversarial countries could use them as a weapon

against them and their allies.

Morgan: 'Deepfakes' can be used to destroy trust in

public and private institutions, and even individuals.

Narrator: Shortly after the Russian invasion

of Ukraine in 2022,

a fake video of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky

telling his soldiers to surrender,

was circulated online.

It wasn't very convincing. Zelensky's head was pixelated

and seemed too big for his body.

and his voice sounded different.

Fake Zelensky: [speaking Ukrainian]

Narrator: The video was quickly dismissed as a deepfake,

but it showed the potential for the spread of

misinformation in a time of war.

As was the case with Zelensky,

when people viewed the Ali Bongo video,

they couldn't help but notice his peculiar appearance.

Pringle: His face looks a lot puffier and smoother,

and the distance between his eyes looks different.

Aitken: Other things people claimed were odd

how little he blinks and that his speech pattern

seems totally different.

[speaking foreign language]

Narrator: And there are other telltale signs,

unnatural looking colour, blurring of the face

and technical inconsistencies within the audio.

Morgan: There are plenty of 'Deepfake' experts

who admit that President Bongo's video looks

like it could have been fabricated.

Narrator: But others counter that the stroke

he suffered months earlier,

may have impacted his speaking ability,

and that it's possible he had botox injections,

which caused the puffiness in his face.

Pringle: They also claim he had a large amount of make-up

applied to his face...

These explanations make sense.

So it is possible the doubters are wrong.

But, once you've sowed the seeds of doubt,

the damage has been done.

Narrator: Critics warn that 'Deepfake' technology poses

an even greater threat to other members of society -

Specifically women.

In 2019, it was discovered

that of the 15,000 deepfake videos posted online,

a staggering 96% were pornographic.

Morgan: A significant number of them are female public figures.

Obviously these videos were made without their consent.

And they're just the easiest targets.

Really, no one is safe.

Narrator: A cyber-security firm found that in 2020,

'Deepfakes' were weaponized against as many as

100,000 different women

as a form of "revenge porn'.

Aitken: It's a real and horrific issue,

and one which is very hard to regulate.

Morgan: It's illegal in some countries,

as well as certain US states.

Aitken: Legislating against deepfakes is

much more difficult, and much progress remains

to be achieved on the issue.

Narrator: Some of the tech industry's most

prominent companies are also trying to limit

the damage that deepfakes cause.

Google and Facebook are currently exploring new ways

to flag synthetic content.

One of which involves using

the very same technology that helps create them.

Badminton: Artificial Intelligence can be trained

to spot technical inconsistencies in images,

videos and audio that have been 'Deepfaked'.

Morgan: Many companies are also considering adding

a unique digital signature to images and videos

so that it's easy to track where they're coming from.

Narrator: But even something like a digital signature

may not have been enough to quell the suspicion surrounding

the authenticity of Ali Bongo's New Year's address.

Pringle: Was it actually fake?

To solve the mystery once and for all,

in 2020, a cyber-defence firm

runs the New Year's Eve video

through two forensic tests.

To the surprise of many, they concluded it was likely

not 'Deepfaked'!

Morgan: But even so, look at the damage

that just the accusation caused

not just public mistrust, there was an attempted coup!

Narrator: Yet, as 'Deepfake' technology continues to improve,

as evidenced by the @deeptomcruise TikTok account,

many experts believe it may eventually become impossible

for anyone to determine what's real and what isn't.

Aitken: And this may be where the true damage lies.

Simply by existing, deepfakes will call into question

our understanding of what constitutes proof

that something has happened, or existed.

Morgan: In the past, videos and images have been taken

as incontrovertible proof that something did actually occur.

But now, it's going to be a lot harder

to tell fact from fiction.

Narrator: In the best case scenario,

the positive applications of deepfake technology

will one day emerge from the shadow

of their destructive counterparts.

And become a force for good in the world.

But until then, don't believe everything you see.

Tom Cruise Deepfake: Just wait 'till what's coming next!

[laughs]

♪ [show theme music]

♪

Narrator: Chinnavenkateswarlu

is a farmer in Andrha Pradesh, India,

looking for new ways to increase the size of the crop

on his small, 3 acre-farm.

Alexander: Chinnavenkateswarlu's family has had this plot of land

for several generations.

On it, he grows several different types of ground nuts.

Narrator: In early 2016,

he is invited to be part of a pilot program,

which has been organized by Microsoft,

and a prominent international crop research institute,

along with the cooperation of the Indian government.

Pringle: He is one of 175 farmers within the region

that have been chosen to participate

in this research project.

Narrator: Its aim is to see if they can improve India's

agricultural industry by using artificial intelligence.

Morgan: India is just one of many countries

that is using AI to optimize food production.

The projects are still in their initial phases,

but they are already showing some promise.

Narrator: The AI's automated system will send

Chinnavenkateswarlu and the other farmers text messages

containing important information on how to improve their crops.

Alexander: It will do this by providing recommendations

for land preparation, suggested sowing dates,

managing and testing soil nutrients

and providing notes on the application of fertilizers.

Narrator: Researchers for the pilot project are hopeful

that AI will be able to boost the farmer's food production

while improving the overall

nutritional quality of their crops.

With an estimated 2 billion people across the world

suffering from malnutrition,

and millions more who simply don't get enough to eat,

programs like this may be able to make a contribution

to combating the world's food crisis.

Pringle: The cause of the global food crisis

is quite varied and complex.

But one of the major reasons is poverty.

A lot of people are living on an income

of less than $2 dollars a day,

meaning they can't afford to feed their families.

Narrator: And there is substantial evidence

that the food crisis will only get worse.

Recent studies say that by 2050,

the global population will hit 10 billion.

And the UN predicts we'll need to produce

up to 70% more food to meet this increase.

With this in mind, AI is being used in order to make

cultivation more efficient and bountiful.

Pringle: Machine learning algorithms can analyze visual

data of farmer's crops that have been captured by drones

and provide a report on the state of the crops

and the viability of the farm.

Morgan: AI can also use that drone data

to improve the quality of the soil,

by identifying potential nutrient deficiencies.

It can also spot insects, like locusts,

and then warn farmers to let them know

that their crops are at risk of being devoured.

Narrator: In Uganda, farmers have been using this technology

to help identify different diseases.

Using a simple smartphone application,

they are able to analyze plants for possible contamination.

The app can then provide treatment information

to help mitigate the risk of it infecting their entire crop.

Alexander: Several tech companies are also developing

AI robots that can assess the quality of crops.

And harvest them at a much faster pace

and at a higher volume than before.

Narrator: But As AI becomes more common

in the agriculture industry,

it may have a negative impact

on some of the very people it's meant to help.

Pringle: Agriculture is a $3 trillion industry,

that employs over 1.5 billion people worldwide.

That is 20% of the world's population.

And it's predicted that over the next decades this technology

may put millions of workers out of a job.

Morgan: Robotic equipment is both faster and cheaper

than human labour, so many people worry

that once this technology is introduced,

that there will be huge shocks in the labour market

as humans are forced out of work.

Narrator: But there are other positive effects to consider.

AI's application in agriculture,

may be beneficial to the environment.

With the help of technology, farmers might be able

to produce greater yields while using less land.

Pringle: Less land to cultivate and harvest means

there will be less carbon emissions.

Morgan: Every year, huge numbers of crops are lost

to extreme weather events as a result of climate change.

Narrator: A 2019 study by the University of Illinois

found that since the early '80s,

corn yields in the American midwest

were reduced by as much as 37%,

due to excessive rainfall and drought.

But AI applications are proving to be effective in

preparing farmers for the impact of these adverse conditions.

Alexander: Algorithms are now able to analyze a region's

weather conditions from satellite imagery

and compare it to historical data.

Narrator: Such information will be especially important

to farmers like those Chinnavenkateswarlu,

as Andrha Pradesh is known to experience

unpredictable weather.

Morgan: For the past decade,

as a likely result of climate change,

it's become more and more difficult to predict exactly

when monsoon season will happen,

and that has meant poorer and poorer crop yields.

This AI technology can analyse weather data

as far back as we have it,

in order to make very accurate predictions about

exactly when we should be planting and reaping our crops.

This can go a long way towards reducing the impact

of monsoons on crop yields.

♪

Narrator: Chinnavenkateswarlu usually sows his nut crops

in early June, but before he does,

he receives a text suggesting he should wait.

So he puts it off until June 25th.

Pringle: He's hoping this slight shift in timing

will help increase his harvest.

Narrator: Initiatives like the one Chinnavenkateswarlu

is participating in are becoming more and more commonplace.

Globally, investment in artificial intelligence

in agriculture is predicted to grow from $1 billion in 2020,

to $4 billion in 2026.

Alexander: Some of this investment is targeting

what is called AI-driven indoor vertical farming.

This is when, in order to maximize land use,

crops are grown upwards, not as they usually are

on a horizontal, flat field.

Pringle: This approach uses up to 90% less water

and can produce over 20 times more food per acre

than the traditional way of farming.

Narrator: With so many corporations getting into

AI farming, critics worry what impact that may have

on farms that don't have the financial resources

to invest in this new technology.

Over the past decade, family-owned farms have been

disappearing in many parts of the western world,

most of them put out of business by large,

corporate food producers.

Morgan: Some of these family farms have been around

for decades, and now they are gone.

Narrator: Owing to the high cost of implementation

and integration, there are concerns

that as AI increasingly becomes a part of food production,

large corporations will continue to increase their control

over the world's food resources.

Alexander: If just a few corporations

dominate food production, history tells us

that problems like climate change and poverty

are likely not to be adequately addressed.

Pringle: For such enormous issues to be tackled,

we would need a shift not just in how and what we produce,

but also in how the profits are distributed.

And that might be beyond the reach

of artificial intelligence.

Narrator: AI can't do everything,

but as Chinnavenkateswarlu is about to find out,

it might be able to improve crop health and yield.

He harvests his ground nuts on October 28th,

which is a little later than usual.

Morgan: He's usually able to harvest about a ton per hectare,

but this year he's noticed that its increased

to about 1.35 tonnes per hectare.

That's a big deal.

Alexander: And even more significantly,

all the other farmers that were part of the same project

had an average increase of 30% in their yield.

So judging by this little initiative,

it seems that AI can definitely have some positive impact.

Narrator: What real effect artificial intelligence

will have in the fight against world hunger remains unknown.

But one thing is for certain,

in order to feed the world's growing population,

it's paramount that we transform our agricultural systems.

And technology might just be the approach

that puts more food on the table.

♪